My church has a program called Wonderful Wednesdays for Women. It's held every Wednesday morning from something like 8:30 to noon...so obviously it's aimed at housewives and stay-at-home moms, neither of which am I. But I had the opportunity, while unemployed three years ago, to attend a few times, and although I was a generation younger than most of the women there, it was very fun and fulfilling. I was thinking about that this morning, while on the way to work: needing to get more church back into my life.
There was a time, growing up, that I never, ever missed a week at church. I was raised in the Roman Catholic tradition (with an occasional Presbyterian service thrown in, a la my mother) and by the time I hit high school, I was nearly fanatical in my beliefs - I literally went to church several times per week (ok, I also went to a Catholic high school, so some of it was mandated) and come the holidays - Christmas and Easter - I'd go every day straight for weeks. In college, I dropped back to simply 2-3 times per week - every Wednesday at 7 AM at the Catholic Campus Ministry house and once or twice on Sundays. I was the pianist for the Sunday evening college-focused service at the local RC Church in Bloomsburg, and also went in the morning in Scranton if I was awake enough after getting out of my overnight shift at AAA.
After I moved to Texas, I joined a Methodist church. As I've often explained, I did not do so because I have any major beef with the Roman Catholic church. Rather, I lived with the parents of the guy I was dating at the time for about two months after I moved here, while I was settling into my first post-college job and finding an apartment in a strange area and such. Granted, I'd been here before to meet his parents and do job interviews and such, but it was a tremendous help to have somewhere to stay until I could figure out where to live...and get my all-important first professional paycheck, to boot!
The McAlears attended this fabulous church in Southlake, and to be polite, I attended with them each time I visited Texas and then on each Sunday while I lived in their house. After I moved into my own place, I continued to attend...I told myself that I was simply continuing to be polite, and "on the side", I also visited a number of RC churches in the area, trying to find one to call home. After awhile, I realized that none of the dozen or so Catholic churches I attended felt nearly as homey as the Methodist church that I was visiting every week. And so, my accidental conversion. I threw myself into church life - joined a newbie Bible study and joined the choir, which met every Wednesday night.
Has anyone noticed the continuing theme of Wednesdays, yet? Wonderful Wednesdays with Women, Wednesday masses in college, Wednesday night choir...weird!
In any case, I attended every single week I was in town...until about 4 months after I got married! Then...it just starting seeming almost like a chore to get up on Sunday mornings to go to church. I wasn't singing in the choir or playing my violin in the orchestra any longer. It just kind of...fell off. In the past year, we've been to church perhaps 10 times. Pitiful. And I miss it.
So, sitting here this morning, contemplating this Wonderful Wednesday, I'm realizing that I've spent so much time trying to budget my hours to fit in work and writing and activities that I've forgotten what is far more important - my faith. It is said that faith conquers all, and I happen to believe that to be the absolute truth. So instead of worrying about how everything fits together, I'm realizing that I instead need to worry about getting my priorities straight. Whether I produce 15 freelance articles per week versus 10 is far less important than whether I live a life that is true to my beliefs. Sleeping an extra hour or two on a Sunday morning doesn't compare to the wonderful glow of hearing the passionate pastor at my church preach. And using my husband as an excuse (he works nights and often does not arrive home on Sunday mornings until 5 AM, so I tell myself that I can't drag him out of bed so shortly thereafter and shouldn't go without him) is just contemptible.
So on this Wonderful Wednesday, as I look at blocking out a schedule to establish for at least the winter while my mother-in-law is visiting so that all can still be accomplished in our lives, I am reminded that instead of fitting in as many activities as I can, I instead need to fit in the things that most matter: God, family, then anything else.
Hope you all have a Wonderful Wednesday!
Tiffany
It is not often we stop and re-think our priorities. When we take the time and thought to do so, life becomes less hectic and more fun in general. I hope re-adding your Sunday morning ritual will allow you to take care of yourself first. It's easy to forget that when you get married--it ain't all about "him."
ReplyDeleteThis has always been an ongoing issue in our family, too, Tiff. Wait until you have kids - then getting them up and ready for church, becomes another hurdle. Right now we are between churches as the size of the Mansfield church has become a problem for us. I so miss our small Methodist church in Cheney where we knew the 100 people who went every Sunday. It was like family. Now, we go, sit in the pew, and are surrounded by 500 people we don't know. I miss church, too, but am afraid given the size of all of them in Texas that we will never find the intimate little setting again. Sigh! Thanks for sharing.
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